Jewish Justice: The Contested Limits of Nature, Law, and Covenant

by David Novak

Overview

In  Jewish Justice David Novak explores the continuing role of Judaism for crafting ethics, politics, and theology. Drawing on sources as diverse as the Bible, the Talmud, and ancient, medieval, and modern philosophy, Novak asserts Judaism's integral place in communal discourse of the public square.

According to Novak, biblical revelation has universal implications—that it is ultimately God's law to humanity because humans made in God’s image are capable of making intelligent moral choices. The universality of this claim, however, stands in tension with the particularities of Jewish monotheism (one God, one people, one law). Novak’s challenge is for Judaism to capitalize on the way God’s law transcends particularity without destroying difference. Thus it is as Jews that Jews are called to join communities across the faithful denominations, as well as secular ones, to engage in debates about the common good.

Jewish Justice follows a logical progression from grounded ethical quandaries to larger philosophical debates. Novak begins by considering the practical issues of capital punishment, mutilation and torture, corporate crime, the landed status of communities and nations, civil marriage, and religious marriage. He next moves to a consideration of theoretical concerns: God’s universal justice, the universal aim of particular Jewish ethics, human rights and the image of God, the relation of post-Enlightenment social contract theory to the recently enfranchised Jewish community, and the voices of Jewish citizens in secular politics and the public sphere. Novak also explores the intersection of universality and particularity by examining the practice of interfaith dialogue among Jews, Christians, and Muslims.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781481305297
Publisher:	Baylor University Press
Publication date:	03/15/2017
Pages:	311
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.10(h) x 1.30(d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

David Novak is Professor of Religion and Philosophy and the J. Richard and Dorothy Shiff Chair of Jewish Studies at the University of Toronto.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments v

Introduction 1

1 Can Capital Punishment Ever Be Justified in the Jewish Tradition? 13

2 The Elimination of Mutilation and Torture in Rabbinic Thought and Practice 29

3 Natural Law, Human Dignity, and the Protection of Human Property 43

4 Land and People: One Jewish Perspective 57

5 Jewish Marriage and Civil Law: A Two-Way Street? 81

6 Jewish Marriage: Nature, Covenant, and Contract 101

7 Divine Justice/Divine Command 125

8 The Universality of Jewish Ethics: A Rejoinder to Secularist Critics 141

9 The Jadaic Foundation of Rights 165

10 Social Contract in Modern Jewish Thought: A Theological Critique 179

11 Toward Jewish Public Philosophy in America 201

12 Defending Niebuhr from Hauerwas 225

13 Is Natural Law a Border Concept Between Judaism and Christianity? 241

Notes 257

Abbreaviations and Bibliography 289

Credits 301

Index 303

What People are Saying About This

Peter Ochs

David Novak, rabbi and professor, is singularly adept in the range of disciplines needed to speak wisely on Jewish justice: Talmudic/rabbinic jurisprudence, Jewish philosophy, Jewish ethics, and the history of rabbinic practice. A deep reader and interpreter of Greek, Latin, and German philosophic and theological traditions, Novak is singularly qualified to speak wisely to Christian as well as Jewish readers."

Matthew Levering

With rhetorical flair and conceptual rigor, Novak offers an unapologetically Jewish theology in a manner that consistently includes non-Jewish readers and practical implications for life together in pluralist societies. It is this uniquely attractive way of inviting thinkers of all stripes into the richness of the ongoing Jewish theological and ethical conversation that makes Novak so great.

Alan Mittleman

Novak's unparalleled ability to bring philosophical perspicuity to the full range of normative legal and moral texts makes him always worth reading. One could disagree with some of his substantive views, but one always learns a good deal and feels enriched by the encounter with this consummately thoughtful master of Jewish law and ethics.

Editorial Reviews

Novak speaks as a Jewish Theologian to inform us that the Jewish canonical texts for determining the Transcendental all have the core message to act humanely and rationally as a 'pro-active' member of one's community. In so doing, the communities function as homes for the Transcendental.

Literature and Theology - Sheldon Richmond

Novak is certainly to be commended for his readiness to step into the fray and take the first steps toward creating a conversation that is unabashedly grounded in ancient sources yet nonetheless engaged with the problems of today. Illuminating contemporary problems in such a clear and articulate way will undoubtedly spur on scholars of Jewish texts to excavate their sources for answers to these quandaries, which will in turn provide Novak’s successors with the tools to refine their intellectual contributions and offer sophisticated answers based in Jewish tradition as a way of enriching public discourse.

Politcal Theology - Ayelet Hoffmann Libson